Astoria: Part One

Arya and Kass: Chapter Twenty-Seven

      Arya sat alone in a booth for some time, waiting on Kasumi to finish her shift at Watanabe Japanese Steakhouse.

She had heard Kasumi's father asked her something in japanese, and she answered with, 'she's a friend', which her father quickly asked something else in japanese.
Kass made eye contact with Arya, looked away, and said 'she's in the play too'.

      Arya wasn't sure what to think of this. Kasumi had mentioned before how strict her father was, and how he wanted what was best for her.
Arya could imagine that Kasumi's father wouldn't think Arya was good enough for her.

When the restaurant closed, Arya went out to her truck, pulled out a sleeping bag and laid it in the bed.
She lay there looking at the stars for some time.

"Mind if I join you?" Kasumi asked.
"Knock yourself out."

Kass climbed into the bed of Arya's truck. She layed her head on Arya's shoulder.

"Well," she said after a short time, "do you have somewhere to sleep tonight?"
"I was thinking about sleeping in the truck like this," Arya proposed.
"Or," Kasumi ventured, "you could share my bed."

Arya kissed Kasumi's forehead.

"I think," she said slowly, "that would be a terrible idea..."
"Why?" Kass chuckled.
"Because your dad would forbid you from seeing me if he found out."
"Yeah..." Kasumi sighed, "I had to convince them I woke up extra early for school."

Arya giggled.

"Thank god mom had decided to let me drive her car to school today..." Kasumi laughed.
"Yeah," Arya said quietly.
"So," Kass said, softly, "when are we going to get even?"

Arya thought back to last night when she was about to show Kasumi the last thing left to see.

"I don't know," she said shyly, "I don't exactly have a bedroom to undress in."
"That wasn't about to stop you last night," Kasumi argued.
"True," Arya said, smiling.

Arya just felt so comfortable around Kass, and she was pretty Kasumi felt the same way around her.

"What are we?" Arya asked.
"I have no idea..." Kasumi said smiling.
"Friends with benefits?" Arya asked, hoping she would say 'no'.
"We haven't had any 'benefits'," Kass answered.
"Dating?"
"We haven't had a date."
"Are we...girlfriends?" Arya asked, feeling vulnerable.
"I...don't know..." Kasumi hesitated, "maybe it's too early to define it..."
"We haven't even known eachother a week..." Arya pointed out, "feels like forever."
"I know..."
"I guess we've had some pretty intense relationship-building moments..." Arya said softly.
"Yes, we have."

They stayed quiet for a few minutes, looking at the stars.

"Hey, Kasumi?" Arya asked.
"Yes?"
"Will you go on a date with me?"
"Sure, Arya."
"Okay."
"Where do you want to go?" Kasumi asked, grinning widely.
"Fuck if I know."
"How about a starbucks?"
"That sounds good," Arya agreed.
"Tomorrow?" Kasumi asked.
"Yeah," Arya said smiling, "how about I pick you up after school?"
"Okay."

They stopped talking for a few more minutes.

"Hey, Arya?" Kass mimicked.
"Yes, Kass?"
"Does that mean we're dating now?"
"If you want it to."
"I do."
"Good," Arya kissed Kasumi's forehead again, "now you should probably go home and get some sleep.

"Oh, just like that?" Kass chuckled.
"Just like that."

"If you're sleeping outside," Kasumi began, "than so am I."
"No," Arya protested, "you have a bed to go home to."
"Then come with me."
"I thought we agreed that would be a bad idea?"
"I'm not letting you sleep outside alone."

Arya continued to look at the stars for a few minutes.

"Fuck it," Arya chuckled.
"What does that mean?"
"I guess I'm sharing your bed tonight," Arya smiled.

Kasumi sat up.

"Really?" she asked, "you sure?"
"Sure," Arya sat up too, "we'll say we were working on a project and I just fell asleep."
"Sounds good," Kass smiled at the punk.

The pair entered the cab of the truck and began to drive to the Sanae residence. Arya was curious to see what Kasumi's bedroom looked like.

"So," Kass instructed, "we're gonna have to be quiet when we get there."
"Yeah," Arya agreed, "I figured."
"We'll sneak upstairs and then we're pretty much good," she continued, "but if they hear more than one person in the hall, I might get an ear-full."
"Okay."

Arya parked across the street from Kasumi's house.

The two girls quietly walked to the front door and Kass unlocked it.
Once inside, Kasumi took her shoes off and set them to the side, Arya followed suit.
The pair crept upstairs and when the entered Kasumi's room and shut the door, they both let out a sigh of relief.

Kass turned on the light.

Arya first noticed the colors.
It was much more vibrant than she imagined.
There were a lot of anime posters and a shelf full of manga.
There were colorful paintings, a few lava lamps and her computer had a colorful screen saver on it.

"Wow," Arya said, looking around.
"Yeah," Kass agreed, "I tried to get in touch with the culture when I was fifteen."
"So, you started watching anime and reading manga?"
"Yep."

The girls quietly laughed.
Kasumi's bed had a colorful galaxy comforter and pillows.

"Look," Kass started to say.
"No sex," Arya finished, "I get it."

The two smiled at each other.
Kasumi began undressing and then got into bed, looking at Arya expectantly.
Arya, again, followed suit.

The two fell asleep in an embrace.